Where were you...

Most of us remember exactly where we were and what we were doing when a disaster struck. Not just the September eleventh attacks, but any disaster that affected us personally. It doesn't have to be a big national catastrophe. It could be a small personal issue--the death of someone close to us, a car accident, a catastrophic storm.

The thing is, once that event happens, it changes us forever. Our view of life is shifted and we see things from a different perspective. Huge catastrophic events affect more people at one time. And the more people involved in that event, the more kinship in the group. You see the kinship aspects especially after a destructive storm or earthquake. The people who were there share that event and those not affected are forever outside that circle.

In the United States of America, we witnessed and shared such an event that September morning. Unlike the rest of the world, we've had minimal worries about invasions and attacks. We'd grown complacent and maybe even a little arrogant. Bombings, invasions, attacks happened to "other" people. Not us.

And then--in an instant--that was no longer true.

There were a myriad of reactions in the following days. Fear. Anger. Grief. Insecurity. Uncertainty.

Whatever we felt, for that immediate period we knew a strange feeling of national kinship. Like most families, we squabbled amongst ourselves, but joined together at once to defend against an outside threat.

Today is an opportunity to remember not only where we were, but ponder on that national kinship. How did it vanish so quickly? And how can we get it back?